This book contains chapters on various features of Kant's moral psychology and moral theory, with particular emphasis on a conception of rational agency autonomy. The opening chapters explore ...
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This book contains chapters on various features of Kant's moral psychology and moral theory, with particular emphasis on a conception of rational agency autonomy. The opening chapters explore different elements of Kant's views about motivation, including an account of respect for morality as the distinctive moral motive and a view of the principle of happiness as a representation of the shared structure of non-moral choice. These chapters stress the unity of Kant's moral psychology by arguing that moral and non-moral considerations motivate in essentially the same way. Several of the chapters develop an original approach to Kant's conception of autonomy that emphasizes the political metaphors found throughout Kant's writings on ethics. They argue that autonomy is best interpreted not as a psychological capacity, but as a kind of sovereignty: in claiming that moral agents have autonomy, Kant regards them as a kind of sovereign legislator with the power to give moral law through their willing. The final chapters explore some of the implications of this conception of autonomy elsewhere in Kant's moral thought, arguing that his Formula of Universal Law uses this conception of autonomy to generate substantive moral principles and exploring the connection between Kantian self-legislation and duties to oneself.Less

Agency and Autonomy in Kant's Moral Theory : Selected Essays

Andrews Reath

Published in print: 2006-02-23

This book contains chapters on various features of Kant's moral psychology and moral theory, with particular emphasis on a conception of rational agency autonomy. The opening chapters explore different elements of Kant's views about motivation, including an account of respect for morality as the distinctive moral motive and a view of the principle of happiness as a representation of the shared structure of non-moral choice. These chapters stress the unity of Kant's moral psychology by arguing that moral and non-moral considerations motivate in essentially the same way. Several of the chapters develop an original approach to Kant's conception of autonomy that emphasizes the political metaphors found throughout Kant's writings on ethics. They argue that autonomy is best interpreted not as a psychological capacity, but as a kind of sovereignty: in claiming that moral agents have autonomy, Kant regards them as a kind of sovereign legislator with the power to give moral law through their willing. The final chapters explore some of the implications of this conception of autonomy elsewhere in Kant's moral thought, arguing that his Formula of Universal Law uses this conception of autonomy to generate substantive moral principles and exploring the connection between Kantian self-legislation and duties to oneself.

The Law of Non-Contradiction has been high orthodoxy in Western philosophy since Aristotle. The so-called Law has been the subject of radical challenge in recent years by dialetheism, the view that ...
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The Law of Non-Contradiction has been high orthodoxy in Western philosophy since Aristotle. The so-called Law has been the subject of radical challenge in recent years by dialetheism, the view that some contradictions are indeed true. Many philosophers have taken the Law to be central to many of our most important philosophical concepts. This book mounts the case against this view. Starting with an analysis of Aristotle on the Law, it discusses the nature of truth, rationality, negation, and logic itself, and argues that the Law is inessential to all of these things. The book develops Priest’s earlier ideas in In Contradiction.Less

Doubt Truth to be a Liar

Graham Priest

Published in print: 2005-12-15

The Law of Non-Contradiction has been high orthodoxy in Western philosophy since Aristotle. The so-called Law has been the subject of radical challenge in recent years by dialetheism, the view that some contradictions are indeed true. Many philosophers have taken the Law to be central to many of our most important philosophical concepts. This book mounts the case against this view. Starting with an analysis of Aristotle on the Law, it discusses the nature of truth, rationality, negation, and logic itself, and argues that the Law is inessential to all of these things. The book develops Priest’s earlier ideas in In Contradiction.

According to Keller, we have no hope of explaining what is or is not a Just Peace in global relations unless we pay more attention to the intellectual context in which international law was formed. ...
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According to Keller, we have no hope of explaining what is or is not a Just Peace in global relations unless we pay more attention to the intellectual context in which international law was formed. From its birth in the 16th century, there was a progressive retreat by Europeans from conceding sovereign rights to specific non-European peoples, to then only recognizing a conditional sovereignty, and eventually to denying any right to self-determination of non-white peoples. However, there was a tradition of thought that recognized and accommodated cultural diversity that can be found in the writings of Montesquieu and Rousseau, among others. This chapter argues that these writers proposed one of the cornerstones of the concept of a Just Peace, the principle of recognition. This notion was developed from an effort to understand another’s point of view and an appreciation of otherness.Less

Justice, Peace, and History: A Reappraisal

Alexis Keller

Published in print: 2006-01-26

According to Keller, we have no hope of explaining what is or is not a Just Peace in global relations unless we pay more attention to the intellectual context in which international law was formed. From its birth in the 16th century, there was a progressive retreat by Europeans from conceding sovereign rights to specific non-European peoples, to then only recognizing a conditional sovereignty, and eventually to denying any right to self-determination of non-white peoples. However, there was a tradition of thought that recognized and accommodated cultural diversity that can be found in the writings of Montesquieu and Rousseau, among others. This chapter argues that these writers proposed one of the cornerstones of the concept of a Just Peace, the principle of recognition. This notion was developed from an effort to understand another’s point of view and an appreciation of otherness.

This paper evaluates the federal reparations program for fatal victims of political violence in Brazil. The Brazilian reparations program was born of an amnesty movement for political prisoners, ...
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This paper evaluates the federal reparations program for fatal victims of political violence in Brazil. The Brazilian reparations program was born of an amnesty movement for political prisoners, followed by the discovery of mass graves exposing atrocities of the State. In response to pressure from civil society groups and the media, President Cardoso signed the 1995 Law of Victims of Political Assassination and Disappearance. The paper explores the limitations of the law, its exclusion of many victims of political violence, and the charge that the law transferred the burden of proof to victims’ families. It examines the Commission’s structure and operation, as well as the voting patterns of its members. It provides data concerning the cost of the entire reparations process, and sheds light on the surprising truth-telling function the Commission acquired in a country in which official truth-telling about the years of the dictatorship has yet to take place.Less

The Reparations Program in Brazil

Ignacio CanoPatrícia Salvão Ferreira

Published in print: 2006-03-01

This paper evaluates the federal reparations program for fatal victims of political violence in Brazil. The Brazilian reparations program was born of an amnesty movement for political prisoners, followed by the discovery of mass graves exposing atrocities of the State. In response to pressure from civil society groups and the media, President Cardoso signed the 1995 Law of Victims of Political Assassination and Disappearance. The paper explores the limitations of the law, its exclusion of many victims of political violence, and the charge that the law transferred the burden of proof to victims’ families. It examines the Commission’s structure and operation, as well as the voting patterns of its members. It provides data concerning the cost of the entire reparations process, and sheds light on the surprising truth-telling function the Commission acquired in a country in which official truth-telling about the years of the dictatorship has yet to take place.

Currently, International Humanitarian Law (IHL) also known as the law of armed conflict, makes the distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts. International armed ...
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Currently, International Humanitarian Law (IHL) also known as the law of armed conflict, makes the distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts. International armed conflicts are regulated by more treaties than their non-international counterparts. Furthermore, the regulation of international armed conflicts is also considerably more comprehensive than that offered for participants in and victims of non-international armed conflicts. This book asks whether the legal distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts remains viable or whether international law should move to maintain its consonance with the situations it seeks to regulate by developing a unified legal regime applicable in all armed conflicts. There is considerable precedent to support moves towards the elimination of the legal distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts. This book argues that IHL, a law which has, as one of its primary aims, the protection of the person in times of armed conflict, should not distinguish between types of armed conflict, specifically in how the law treats the vulnerable in times of armed conflict – those hors de combat due to illness and injury, and those deprived of their liberty through capture or surrenderLess

The Treatment of Combatants and Insurgents under the Law of Armed Conflict

Emily Crawford

Published in print: 2010-01-14

Currently, International Humanitarian Law (IHL) also known as the law of armed conflict, makes the distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts. International armed conflicts are regulated by more treaties than their non-international counterparts. Furthermore, the regulation of international armed conflicts is also considerably more comprehensive than that offered for participants in and victims of non-international armed conflicts. This book asks whether the legal distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts remains viable or whether international law should move to maintain its consonance with the situations it seeks to regulate by developing a unified legal regime applicable in all armed conflicts. There is considerable precedent to support moves towards the elimination of the legal distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts. This book argues that IHL, a law which has, as one of its primary aims, the protection of the person in times of armed conflict, should not distinguish between types of armed conflict, specifically in how the law treats the vulnerable in times of armed conflict – those hors de combat due to illness and injury, and those deprived of their liberty through capture or surrender

This text contains the latest edition of this book. It covers the basis of the Japanese legal system, the civil code, business related laws, and other laws including criminal law and procedure, and ...
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This text contains the latest edition of this book. It covers the basis of the Japanese legal system, the civil code, business related laws, and other laws including criminal law and procedure, and foreign relations law. Since the last edition, Japanese law has undergone major reform all of which is reflected in the new text. In particular, the new edition covers the new company law and the Financial Products Trading Law, both of which have been completely overhauled. After the ‘lost decade’ following the collapse of the ‘bubble economy’ in 1990, Japan has gone through a major reform — deregulation or ‘regulatory reform’. Accordingly, major changes took place in almost every area of law. There was a large-scale ‘Justice System Reform’ which encompassed various changes in the court system, the introduction of lay assessors in the criminal procedure, a new law school system, etc. Company law, which was embodied in the Commercial Code, was completely overhauled under a different concept and became a separate law — the Company Law of 2005. Securities and Exchange Law was replaced by the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law in 2006. Even the Civil Code, which had remained more or less unchanged (except for family and succession) since the late 19th century, has gone through significant changes. Certainly there are many positive results coming out of these reforms, but also there have been some doubtful changes. Thee outcome of the reforms of the past decade is yet to be assessed. These changes and their impact are covered in this book.Less

Japanese Law

Hiroshi Oda

Published in print: 2009-04-16

This text contains the latest edition of this book. It covers the basis of the Japanese legal system, the civil code, business related laws, and other laws including criminal law and procedure, and foreign relations law. Since the last edition, Japanese law has undergone major reform all of which is reflected in the new text. In particular, the new edition covers the new company law and the Financial Products Trading Law, both of which have been completely overhauled. After the ‘lost decade’ following the collapse of the ‘bubble economy’ in 1990, Japan has gone through a major reform — deregulation or ‘regulatory reform’. Accordingly, major changes took place in almost every area of law. There was a large-scale ‘Justice System Reform’ which encompassed various changes in the court system, the introduction of lay assessors in the criminal procedure, a new law school system, etc. Company law, which was embodied in the Commercial Code, was completely overhauled under a different concept and became a separate law — the Company Law of 2005. Securities and Exchange Law was replaced by the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law in 2006. Even the Civil Code, which had remained more or less unchanged (except for family and succession) since the late 19th century, has gone through significant changes. Certainly there are many positive results coming out of these reforms, but also there have been some doubtful changes. Thee outcome of the reforms of the past decade is yet to be assessed. These changes and their impact are covered in this book.

This chapter provides an account of the nature of negation which not only endorses the traditional idea of negation as a contradictory-forming operator, but also allows for the possibility of ...
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This chapter provides an account of the nature of negation which not only endorses the traditional idea of negation as a contradictory-forming operator, but also allows for the possibility of dialetheism.Less

Contradiction

Graham Priest

Published in print: 2005-12-15

This chapter provides an account of the nature of negation which not only endorses the traditional idea of negation as a contradictory-forming operator, but also allows for the possibility of dialetheism.

Traditional international law aims to protect the values and interests of states. The rapidly increasing corpus of international human rights law (including international humanitarian law and ...
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Traditional international law aims to protect the values and interests of states. The rapidly increasing corpus of international human rights law (including international humanitarian law and international criminal law) increasingly challenges the basic tenets of general international law. In order to become accepted as the law of the world community, general international law needs to reflect better the values and interests of a wider range of actors, including the individual. This book examines the impact of international human rights law on general international law. It considers areas including the structure of international obligations, the formation of customary international law, treaty law, immunities, state responsibility, and diplomatic protection. The book traces the extent to which concepts emanating from international human rights law are being incorporated by the guardians of traditional international law: the International Court of Justice and the International Law Commission.Less

The Impact of Human Rights Law on General International Law

Published in print: 2009-02-05

Traditional international law aims to protect the values and interests of states. The rapidly increasing corpus of international human rights law (including international humanitarian law and international criminal law) increasingly challenges the basic tenets of general international law. In order to become accepted as the law of the world community, general international law needs to reflect better the values and interests of a wider range of actors, including the individual. This book examines the impact of international human rights law on general international law. It considers areas including the structure of international obligations, the formation of customary international law, treaty law, immunities, state responsibility, and diplomatic protection. The book traces the extent to which concepts emanating from international human rights law are being incorporated by the guardians of traditional international law: the International Court of Justice and the International Law Commission.

Despite widespread admiration for the First Amendment's protection of speech, this iconic feature of American legal thought has never been adequately theorized. Existing theories of speech proceed on ...
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Despite widespread admiration for the First Amendment's protection of speech, this iconic feature of American legal thought has never been adequately theorized. Existing theories of speech proceed on the basis of legal doctrine and judicial decisionmaking, social and political philosophy, or legal and intellectual history. But these are not the disciplines one would most naturally turn to in analyzing speech. This book takes a new and different approach. The book develops a general legal theory of speech on the basis of linguistic theory and the philosophy of language. The opening chapters retrace the main conceptual stages in the expression of meaning: from natural meaning, through symbolism, to signification. The book then focuses on three failed attempts to demarcate the outer, definitional boundaries of “speech” in the constitutional sense: prior restraints, obscenity, and defamation. Later chapters analyze symbolic speech (communication by nonlinguistic means) as the key to developing an intention-based theory of speech. The essential elements of the theory are: Nonnatural Meaning; The Signaling of Intent; The Recognition of Intent; and Establishing a Convention. A final chapter applies these insights to the case law of symbolic speech and resolves some basic confusions in the legal literature. This analysis proceeds by way of an original distinction between actual conduct (in the real world) and the “ideal conduct” described in a statute. The former may be described both as communicative and noncommunicative, while the latter has already been conceptualized as either communicative or noncommunicative. This distinction clears up a major legal quandary: how conduct that counts as communication may nevertheless be regulated or prohibited, without running afoul of the First Amendment's protection of speech.Less

Meaning in Law : A Theory of Speech

Charles W. Collier

Published in print: 2009-10-01

Despite widespread admiration for the First Amendment's protection of speech, this iconic feature of American legal thought has never been adequately theorized. Existing theories of speech proceed on the basis of legal doctrine and judicial decisionmaking, social and political philosophy, or legal and intellectual history. But these are not the disciplines one would most naturally turn to in analyzing speech. This book takes a new and different approach. The book develops a general legal theory of speech on the basis of linguistic theory and the philosophy of language. The opening chapters retrace the main conceptual stages in the expression of meaning: from natural meaning, through symbolism, to signification. The book then focuses on three failed attempts to demarcate the outer, definitional boundaries of “speech” in the constitutional sense: prior restraints, obscenity, and defamation. Later chapters analyze symbolic speech (communication by nonlinguistic means) as the key to developing an intention-based theory of speech. The essential elements of the theory are: Nonnatural Meaning; The Signaling of Intent; The Recognition of Intent; and Establishing a Convention. A final chapter applies these insights to the case law of symbolic speech and resolves some basic confusions in the legal literature. This analysis proceeds by way of an original distinction between actual conduct (in the real world) and the “ideal conduct” described in a statute. The former may be described both as communicative and noncommunicative, while the latter has already been conceptualized as either communicative or noncommunicative. This distinction clears up a major legal quandary: how conduct that counts as communication may nevertheless be regulated or prohibited, without running afoul of the First Amendment's protection of speech.

The determinism-free will debate is perhaps as old as philosophy itself and has been engaged in from a great variety of points of view including those of scientific, theological, and logical ...
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The determinism-free will debate is perhaps as old as philosophy itself and has been engaged in from a great variety of points of view including those of scientific, theological, and logical character. This chapter focuses on two arguments from logic. First, there is an argument in support of determinism that dates back to Aristotle, if not farther. It rests on acceptance of the Law of Excluded Middle, according to which every proposition is either true or false, no matter whether the proposition is about the past, present or future. In particular, the argument goes, whatever one does or does not do in the future is determined in the present by the truth or falsity of the corresponding proposition. The second argument coming from logic is much more modern and appeals to Gödel's incompleteness theorems to make the case against determinism and in favour of free will, insofar as that applies to the mathematical potentialities of human beings. The claim more precisely is that as a consequence of the incompleteness theorems, those potentialities cannot be exactly circumscribed by the output of any computing machine even allowing unlimited time and space for its work. The chapter concludes with some new considerations that may be in favour of a partial mechanist account of the mathematical mind.Less

Gödel’s incompleteness theorems, free will and mathematical thought

SOLOMON FEFERMAN

Published in print: 2011-12-01

The determinism-free will debate is perhaps as old as philosophy itself and has been engaged in from a great variety of points of view including those of scientific, theological, and logical character. This chapter focuses on two arguments from logic. First, there is an argument in support of determinism that dates back to Aristotle, if not farther. It rests on acceptance of the Law of Excluded Middle, according to which every proposition is either true or false, no matter whether the proposition is about the past, present or future. In particular, the argument goes, whatever one does or does not do in the future is determined in the present by the truth or falsity of the corresponding proposition. The second argument coming from logic is much more modern and appeals to Gödel's incompleteness theorems to make the case against determinism and in favour of free will, insofar as that applies to the mathematical potentialities of human beings. The claim more precisely is that as a consequence of the incompleteness theorems, those potentialities cannot be exactly circumscribed by the output of any computing machine even allowing unlimited time and space for its work. The chapter concludes with some new considerations that may be in favour of a partial mechanist account of the mathematical mind.

Manifest Activity examines Thomas Reid's efforts to provide answers to a host of traditional philosophical questions concerning the nature of the will, the powers of human beings, motivation, and the ...
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Manifest Activity examines Thomas Reid's efforts to provide answers to a host of traditional philosophical questions concerning the nature of the will, the powers of human beings, motivation, and the relation between human action and natural change. The concept of ‘active power’ stands at the centre of Reid's philosophy of action. He holds that actions are all and only the events of which some creature is the ‘efficient cause’, and he thinks a creature is the efficient cause of an event just in case it has the power to bring that event about and exerts it. Reid's conception both of human actions and changes in nature is deeply teleological. He holds that to exert a power is to direct an event towards an end, and he holds that all changes, whether actions or events in nature, flow from the exertion of power. The book explains the details of this view, Reid's reasons for holding it, and its implications to our understanding of action, agency, and our relation to the natural world.Less

Manifest Activity : Thomas Reid's Theory of Action

Gideon Yaffe

Published in print: 2004-03-25

Manifest Activity examines Thomas Reid's efforts to provide answers to a host of traditional philosophical questions concerning the nature of the will, the powers of human beings, motivation, and the relation between human action and natural change. The concept of ‘active power’ stands at the centre of Reid's philosophy of action. He holds that actions are all and only the events of which some creature is the ‘efficient cause’, and he thinks a creature is the efficient cause of an event just in case it has the power to bring that event about and exerts it. Reid's conception both of human actions and changes in nature is deeply teleological. He holds that to exert a power is to direct an event towards an end, and he holds that all changes, whether actions or events in nature, flow from the exertion of power. The book explains the details of this view, Reid's reasons for holding it, and its implications to our understanding of action, agency, and our relation to the natural world.

This chapter examines the unravelling of the Union between 1886 and 1921. It discusses the continuing link between Union and Empire, the incoherence of Diceyan Unionism, centre-periphery politics, ...
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This chapter examines the unravelling of the Union between 1886 and 1921. It discusses the continuing link between Union and Empire, the incoherence of Diceyan Unionism, centre-periphery politics, the attempted Unionist coup-d’etat in 1910-14, Bonar Law and Ulster paramilitarism, George V’s threatened vetoes, and primoridal and instrumental Unionism. By 1921, the Union question had resolved into a Northern Ireland question and an imperial question. It left two ragged ends from the 1886 attempt to settle it, namely representation and finance in the outlying parts of the Union.Less

THE HIGH NOON OF UNIONISM: 1886–1921

Iain McleanAlistair McMillan

Published in print: 2005-09-29

This chapter examines the unravelling of the Union between 1886 and 1921. It discusses the continuing link between Union and Empire, the incoherence of Diceyan Unionism, centre-periphery politics, the attempted Unionist coup-d’etat in 1910-14, Bonar Law and Ulster paramilitarism, George V’s threatened vetoes, and primoridal and instrumental Unionism. By 1921, the Union question had resolved into a Northern Ireland question and an imperial question. It left two ragged ends from the 1886 attempt to settle it, namely representation and finance in the outlying parts of the Union.

This chapter discusses the search for the causes of technological progress. It observes that, in the past ten years, a veritable revolution has occurred in a wide variety of fields, from genetic ...
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This chapter discusses the search for the causes of technological progress. It observes that, in the past ten years, a veritable revolution has occurred in a wide variety of fields, from genetic engineering to consumer electronics. The chapter notes that the essence of technological progress is its unpredictability, and that nothing in the historical record seems to indicate that the creation of new technological opportunities—as opposed to their exploitation—is subject to diminishing returns, fatigue, old age, or exhaustion. It opines that if Cardwell's Law can be extrapolated into the future, no single society should expect to be on the cutting edge of technology forever. As Schumpeter stressed, the enemy of technological progress was not the lack of useful new ideas, but the social forces that, for one reason or another, tried to preserve the status quo.Less

Epilogue

Joel Mokyr

Published in print: 1992-06-25

This chapter discusses the search for the causes of technological progress. It observes that, in the past ten years, a veritable revolution has occurred in a wide variety of fields, from genetic engineering to consumer electronics. The chapter notes that the essence of technological progress is its unpredictability, and that nothing in the historical record seems to indicate that the creation of new technological opportunities—as opposed to their exploitation—is subject to diminishing returns, fatigue, old age, or exhaustion. It opines that if Cardwell's Law can be extrapolated into the future, no single society should expect to be on the cutting edge of technology forever. As Schumpeter stressed, the enemy of technological progress was not the lack of useful new ideas, but the social forces that, for one reason or another, tried to preserve the status quo.

Noreen Burrows and Rosa Greaves

Published in print:

2007

Published Online:

January 2009

ISBN:

9780199299003

eISBN:

9780191715037

Item type:

book

Publisher:

Oxford University Press

DOI:

10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199299003.001.0001

Subject:

Law, EU Law

The prominence of the Advocate General is one of the most distinctive and controversial features of the European Court of Justice. The Advocate General and EC Law is the first comprehensive study of ...
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The prominence of the Advocate General is one of the most distinctive and controversial features of the European Court of Justice. The Advocate General and EC Law is the first comprehensive study of the Advocate General and his role in the development of EC Law. In Part I, the book examines the history of the role, the questions over its future, and the role's importance in the procedures of the Court. In Part II, the book analyses the contribution of some of the most influential Advocates General to the development of specific aspects of Community law, including Francis Jacobs on intellectual property, Walter van Gerven on discrimination, and Jean Pierre Warner on competition procedure. In Part III, the book explores the contributions of a range of Advocates General to specific principles of Community Law, including state liability, direct effect, and the concept of citizenship. This book offers a unique perspective on politics of the European Court of Justice — one of the driving forces behind closer European integration.Less

The Advocate General and EC Law

Noreen BurrowsRosa Greaves

Published in print: 2007-03-15

The prominence of the Advocate General is one of the most distinctive and controversial features of the European Court of Justice. The Advocate General and EC Law is the first comprehensive study of the Advocate General and his role in the development of EC Law. In Part I, the book examines the history of the role, the questions over its future, and the role's importance in the procedures of the Court. In Part II, the book analyses the contribution of some of the most influential Advocates General to the development of specific aspects of Community law, including Francis Jacobs on intellectual property, Walter van Gerven on discrimination, and Jean Pierre Warner on competition procedure. In Part III, the book explores the contributions of a range of Advocates General to specific principles of Community Law, including state liability, direct effect, and the concept of citizenship. This book offers a unique perspective on politics of the European Court of Justice — one of the driving forces behind closer European integration.

This chapter explains why the Clinton administration chose to sign, and the Bush administration chose to ‘unsign’ the Rome Treaty. Both argued that the Treaty violated the principle of sovereign ...
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This chapter explains why the Clinton administration chose to sign, and the Bush administration chose to ‘unsign’ the Rome Treaty. Both argued that the Treaty violated the principle of sovereign consent and they both appealed to Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties to support their argument. The chapter then asks why the US finds this argument so compelling when other democratic states are not threatened by the Court. The chapter offers an answer that goes beyond arguments that focus on America's national interests and its international responsibilities. Instead, it focuses on the cultural role that democratic consent plays in constituting America as a separate nation. The policy of opposing the ICC while offering alternative approaches to international criminal justice is, therefore, a representational practice designed to instantiate a particular image of America as well as a political move to protect the national interest.Less

Understanding US Opposition to the ICC

Jason Ralph

Published in print: 2007-05-01

This chapter explains why the Clinton administration chose to sign, and the Bush administration chose to ‘unsign’ the Rome Treaty. Both argued that the Treaty violated the principle of sovereign consent and they both appealed to Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties to support their argument. The chapter then asks why the US finds this argument so compelling when other democratic states are not threatened by the Court. The chapter offers an answer that goes beyond arguments that focus on America's national interests and its international responsibilities. Instead, it focuses on the cultural role that democratic consent plays in constituting America as a separate nation. The policy of opposing the ICC while offering alternative approaches to international criminal justice is, therefore, a representational practice designed to instantiate a particular image of America as well as a political move to protect the national interest.

Throughout the Christian era, Paul has stood at the center of controversy, accused of being the father of Christian anti-Semitism. This book challenges this entrenched view of Paul, arguing ...
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Throughout the Christian era, Paul has stood at the center of controversy, accused of being the father of Christian anti-Semitism. This book challenges this entrenched view of Paul, arguing persuasively that Paul's words have been taken out of their original context, distorted, and generally misconstrued. Using Paul's own writings, the book sets forth a controversial interpretation of the apostle's teaching as he takes us in search of the “real” Paul. Through an analysis of Paul's letters to the Galatians and the Romans, he provides illuminating answers to the key questions: Did Paul repudiate the Law of Moses? Did he believe that Jews had been rejected by God and replaced as His chosen people by Gentiles? Did he consider circumcision to be necessary for salvation? And did he expect Jews to find salvation through Jesus? The book tells us that Paul was an apostle to the Gentiles, not the Jews. His most vehement arguments were directed not against Judaism but against competing apostles in the Jesus movement who demanded that Gentiles be circumcised and conform to Jewish law in order to be saved. Moreover, Paul relied on rhetorical devices that were familiar to his intended audience but opaque to later readers of the letters. As a result, his message has been misunderstood by succeeding generations.Less

Reinventing Paul

John G. Gager

Published in print: 2002-05-16

Throughout the Christian era, Paul has stood at the center of controversy, accused of being the father of Christian anti-Semitism. This book challenges this entrenched view of Paul, arguing persuasively that Paul's words have been taken out of their original context, distorted, and generally misconstrued. Using Paul's own writings, the book sets forth a controversial interpretation of the apostle's teaching as he takes us in search of the “real” Paul. Through an analysis of Paul's letters to the Galatians and the Romans, he provides illuminating answers to the key questions: Did Paul repudiate the Law of Moses? Did he believe that Jews had been rejected by God and replaced as His chosen people by Gentiles? Did he consider circumcision to be necessary for salvation? And did he expect Jews to find salvation through Jesus? The book tells us that Paul was an apostle to the Gentiles, not the Jews. His most vehement arguments were directed not against Judaism but against competing apostles in the Jesus movement who demanded that Gentiles be circumcised and conform to Jewish law in order to be saved. Moreover, Paul relied on rhetorical devices that were familiar to his intended audience but opaque to later readers of the letters. As a result, his message has been misunderstood by succeeding generations.

A comprehensive review of the literature on electoral systems establishes the progress made in the field in recent years. This area of political science research can now be regarded as a mature ...
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A comprehensive review of the literature on electoral systems establishes the progress made in the field in recent years. This area of political science research can now be regarded as a mature field. Questions concerning the relationships between electoral systems, proportionality, and the number of political parties in a party system (often summed up in terms of Duverger’s Law, or variants thereof) can now be regarded as largely settled. Important questions for future research include the intraparty dimension of electoral systems, and the origins of electoral systems.Less

Comparative Electoral Systems Research: The Maturation of a Field and New Challenges Ahead

Matthew Søberg Shugart

Published in print: 2005-09-15

A comprehensive review of the literature on electoral systems establishes the progress made in the field in recent years. This area of political science research can now be regarded as a mature field. Questions concerning the relationships between electoral systems, proportionality, and the number of political parties in a party system (often summed up in terms of Duverger’s Law, or variants thereof) can now be regarded as largely settled. Important questions for future research include the intraparty dimension of electoral systems, and the origins of electoral systems.

This chapter examines the structure and role of ambiguity in the Japanese Organ Transplant Law by looking at the Chinese Huayen Buddhist doctrine of dharmadhatu-pratityasamutpada (fajie yuanqi shuo) ...
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This chapter examines the structure and role of ambiguity in the Japanese Organ Transplant Law by looking at the Chinese Huayen Buddhist doctrine of dharmadhatu-pratityasamutpada (fajie yuanqi shuo) or universal dependent “coarising”, a major interpretation of the Buddha's pratityasamutpada, dependent-coarising or interdependence. Specifically, it will examine the nature of ambiguity through the zhuban yuanming jude men or “the attribute of the complete accommodation of principal and secondary dharmas” that Fazang (643-712) formulated. The interdependent and evolving Buddhist vision of reality causes ambiguity in decision making and action.Less

Ethics of Ambiguity : A Buddhist Reflection on the Japanese Organ Transplant Law

Ronald Y. Nakasone

Published in print: 2006-09-01

This chapter examines the structure and role of ambiguity in the Japanese Organ Transplant Law by looking at the Chinese Huayen Buddhist doctrine of dharmadhatu-pratityasamutpada (fajie yuanqi shuo) or universal dependent “coarising”, a major interpretation of the Buddha's pratityasamutpada, dependent-coarising or interdependence. Specifically, it will examine the nature of ambiguity through the zhuban yuanming jude men or “the attribute of the complete accommodation of principal and secondary dharmas” that Fazang (643-712) formulated. The interdependent and evolving Buddhist vision of reality causes ambiguity in decision making and action.

Russia’s mixed parallel system was adopted after the collapse of communism, following a series of negotiations and disagreements between parliament and president. The high thresholds applied in the ...
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Russia’s mixed parallel system was adopted after the collapse of communism, following a series of negotiations and disagreements between parliament and president. The high thresholds applied in the PR-list component of elections resulted in considerable disproportionality and a significant number of votes cast for parties that failed to reach the threshold. The fact that the lists were closed led to very weak links between list MPs and citizens. The single-member constituencies, contrary to the predictions of Duverger’s Law, have not favoured the larger parties, but have seen the election of many independent MPs. The elimination of the single-member constituencies proposed by president Putin is part of a broader authoritarian adaptation of the electoral process.Less

Russia: The Authoritarian Adaptation of an Electoral System

Steven White

Published in print: 2005-09-15

Russia’s mixed parallel system was adopted after the collapse of communism, following a series of negotiations and disagreements between parliament and president. The high thresholds applied in the PR-list component of elections resulted in considerable disproportionality and a significant number of votes cast for parties that failed to reach the threshold. The fact that the lists were closed led to very weak links between list MPs and citizens. The single-member constituencies, contrary to the predictions of Duverger’s Law, have not favoured the larger parties, but have seen the election of many independent MPs. The elimination of the single-member constituencies proposed by president Putin is part of a broader authoritarian adaptation of the electoral process.

The origins of electoral systems are varied, with some brought into being with all-party consensus and others being introduced by majorities for clearly partisan motives. Turning to the impact of ...
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The origins of electoral systems are varied, with some brought into being with all-party consensus and others being introduced by majorities for clearly partisan motives. Turning to the impact of electoral systems, the existence of the patterns highlighted by Duverger’s Law is evident, yet it is also clear that electoral systems do not by themselves shape party systems. The impact of electoral systems upon intra-party power, and upon the representativeness of parliaments, is assessed in the light of the evidence from 22 countries. The chapter discusses the criteria that might be employed to decide the question of which electoral system is best.Less

Conclusion

Michael Gallagher

Published in print: 2005-09-15

The origins of electoral systems are varied, with some brought into being with all-party consensus and others being introduced by majorities for clearly partisan motives. Turning to the impact of electoral systems, the existence of the patterns highlighted by Duverger’s Law is evident, yet it is also clear that electoral systems do not by themselves shape party systems. The impact of electoral systems upon intra-party power, and upon the representativeness of parliaments, is assessed in the light of the evidence from 22 countries. The chapter discusses the criteria that might be employed to decide the question of which electoral system is best.